Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1887-09-17
HlVW TO TREAT COMPANY
DISCOURSE BY REV. DR.. TALMAGE
AT THE sHAMPToNs.

AT THE HAMPToNs.
F4Thc Trials and Rounrds of Christian
E.ss Eospitality-The Toll and Expense of
L Exercising TIA Pretty Custom Among
Greeks.
TIM HAApfoNs, Sept 1.-THE Rev. Dr..
IN : De Witt Talmagc's text today WINS from
Ronaaiis xii, 10: "Given to hospitality" anu
;hhis discourse as follows.
There is danger that the multiplication Of
Eiarge aud conlnodious hotels Ia our towns
Es6nlscities and villages will utterly extermI-
f.,aiate that grace which Abraham exhibited
issyhep ho entertained the angels, and which
sIsot showed when he watched for guests at
sst6egate of the city, and which Christ recog-
gudzed as positive requisite for entering
fsheaven when he declared: ~ was a stranger
tsand We took me I'M G
propose TO speak this morning of tire
Is trials and rewards OF Christian hospitality.
first trial often comes III the within and
4 eccentricity of the guest himself. There IRE
Ia great many excellent people who have pro-
gStuberauces Of disposition, and sbnrp edges OF
4 temperament, and unpliability Of character,
(which make them g positive nuisance iii any
i house where they stay. On short acquaint-
i. ance they VIII begin to command the house
i hold affairs, order the employees to unusual
i service, keep unreasonable hours, use nar-
\ cotics In places offensive to sensitive nostrils,
i put their feet at unusual elevations, drop tho
Washes of their Havana on costly tapestry,
i open bureaus they ought never to touch. aud
+ pry into things they ought never to sec, and
\ become impervious to rousing bells, and
have all the pecularities Of the gor-
mandizer or the dyspectic, and mako
excavations from poor dentistry with
unusual implements, and In thousand ways
:aifict the household which proposes to take
-care of them. Added to all, they stay too
l;long. They have no idea when their well
come Is worn out, and they would be un-
\ moved even by tho blessing which my friend
iGer,it Smith, the philanthropist, asked one
morning ct his breakfast table, OH the day
when he hoped TINT the long protractetl guests
/ would depart, saying: 40 Lord, bless this
1 provision, and orr friends who leave us to-
Iidayln But, my friends, there ure alleviations
! to be put OH their side Of the scale. Perhaps
4 they have not had the same refining influences
I about them IN early life that you have had.
Perhaps they have Inherited ecccn-
| tricties that they cannot help. Perhaps it is
! your duty, by example, to show them bet
|. ter way. Perhaps they are sent to be q trial
for tho development Of Your patience Per-
Ehaps they were to be intended as all illustra-
/ ton CT the opposite OF what you are trying
|. to inculcate In the minds of your children.
4 Perhaps it is to make your home the brighter
1
CHEEKY, and fascinating. and elegunt, it is
very easy to entertain them; but when We
| find in our guests that which is antagonistic
| to our taste and sentiment, 1t Is a positive
1 triumph when we can obey the words of my
! text and be given to hospitality"
| Another trial in the using OF this grace is
| in the toll and expense Of exercising it. In
| the well regulated household things go
smoothly. but now you have introduced a
foreign element into the machinery, and
! though you may stoutly declare that they
| must take things US they flnd Them, the Mar
i tho will break in The ungovernable stove;
! the ruined dessert; the joint that proves to be
lEsunnlastjtable; the delayed marketing; the
knsrpia1 itcs og aa caterer; the difficulty Of
j doing proper work, end yet always being
mescntablc Though you may say there
shall be no caro- or anxiety, there will be care
and there will be anxiety. In 1894 the cap
tain general provided very grand entertain
men5; and, among other things, he had
| fountain in his garden-a fountain Of strong
drink In it we're four hogsheads OF brandy,
eight hogsheads of water. $4,000 lemons,
thirteen hundredweight of lisbon sugar, five
| pounds OF grated nutmeg, 500 toasted biscuits
and a boat built OH purpose Yves plnced III the
| fountain, and boy rowed around it and filed
the cups Of the people who came there to ba
supplied. Well, you say, that was q luxur1-
Gus entertainment, and OF course the man Ind
no anxiety; but have to tell you, thas
though you had, or propose, an entertain
mont like that you have anxiety. In
that vc-7 thing comes the Divine
reward. We were born to serve, and when
we servo others, we serve God. The flush on
TINT vonlan's check, as she bends over the
hot stove, Is as sacred IN Gods sight as the
flush OH tho cheek Of one who, on hot day,
breaches the Gospel. We may serve God
with plate, and cutlery, ard broom as GER
tainly as we can serve him WITH psalm
book aud liturgy. Margaret. queen OF Nor
way, and Sweden, and Denmark, had royal
cup of ten lips, on which was recorded the
names OF. the guests who had drunk from this
cup. Aud every Christian woman has
royal cup, on which are written all the names
OF those who have ever been entertained Dy
her in Christian style-names not cut by hui
man ingenuity, but written by the hand OF
Divine Jesus. But my friends, you
nre not TO toll unnecessarily. Though
tho fare be plain, cheerful presidency Oh the
table. and cleanliness of nppoiutments Will be
good enough for anybody that ever comes to
Your house. John Howard was invited to
the house OF O nobleman. He snid: II will
come OH one condition, and that is that You
have nothing but potatoes OH the table" The
renuistinn was complied with. Cyrus, King
of Persia, under the same circumstances, pre-
scribcd that on tbe table there must be
nothing but bread. Of course these were e1-
tremes but they arc illustrations of the fact
that moro depends upon tire banqueters than
upon tho banquet want to LIT this idea OF
Christian entertainment out OF positive
bondage into glorious inducement. Livery
effort YOU put forth, and every dollar you
Owe 10 the entertainment of friend or foe,
Won give directly to Christ. Suppose it were
onnounced that tho Lord Jesus Christ would
comm 20 this place this week, what woman IN
this house would not be glad to wash for MIN,
O. spread for him bed, or bake bread for
! bim2 There was one of old who washed for
him. drawing the water from tho well OF her
own tears. he Is coming. He will be here
tomorrow. "Inasmuch as ye have done 1t
TO one of the least of these, my brethren, ye
have done it to me.n In picture galleries we
have often seen representations OF Walter
Scott and his friends, or Washington Irving
with Ills associates; but all those engravinss
will fade out, while through everlasting ages,
-banqIur luminous and conspicuous, will be
tbs picture of you and your Christian guests.
You see VIC have passed out from the trials
! into the rewards Of Christian hospitality,
grand, glorious and eternal. The first re-
-, 9c,i.-;.4:., l,ocnita litN Is the Divine